Prep girls basketball: Mount Rainier 57, Jackson 39

DES MOINES — In March, the Mount Rainier High School girls basketball team ended Jackson’s hopes of a state championship with a 57-39 victory in the Class 4A state quarterfinals.

Saturday, the Rams, the No. 1-ranked 4A team in the state in the Seattle Times poll, showed the Timberwolves they still have some work to do if they are going to compete for a state title this season.

The Rams used a dominant third quarter to beat Jackson 69-46 in a nonconference game at the Les Schwab invite.

“Literally they just were more physical and they knocked down shots,” Jackson coach Jeannie Boyer said of the decisive third quarter. “They shot a great percentage from the field and they capitalized on the offensive glass. Obviously (Brittany) McPhee is a great rebounder, but their other kids did it too. They were able to out-muscle us under the basket and the rebounding disparity is definitely a key point to not being able to finish this ball game.”

In total, the Rams out-rebounded the Timberwolves 53-30.

It also didn’t hurt that the Rams have one of the better players in the state in McPhee. She scored 31 points and shot 11-for-19 from the field.

“She is so hard to guard because she is big enough that your fast guards can’t guard her, but she is fast enough where your post players have a tough time,” Boyer said. “She is incredibly physical. She leaps well. Obviously, she has a beautiful touch on the ball. She is an all-around great player. And she displayed every facet of her game tonight, from stepping out and hitting a three to knocking down free throws and definitely owning the glass.”

Jackson guard Sierra Anderson was a bright spot offensively for the Timberwolves. She led the team with 18 points and shot 7-for-14 from the field. But it wasn’t enough to keep Jackson in the game in the second half.

“Sierra has stepped up two games in a row now,” Boyer said. “We have known that Sierra is this type of player and that she can have performances like this and I thought she did a really nice job today keeping her cool and be willing to play the defense she needed to out on Jordan McPhee, but then also be a team leader. She had some good moments out there today. It was really fun to be able to perform against a team like this.”

Aaron Lommers covers prep sports for The Herald. Follow him on twitter @aaronlommers and contact him at alommers@heraldnet.com.